The Ring has a new bearer, and apparently he believes in using his collectibles. Three years after paying $2 million for the one-of-one The One Ring card, Post Malone took it out of its protective slab and put it onto the battlefield during a real game of Magic: The Gathering.
The musician brought the card to a recent episode of The Command Zone’s Game Knights, where he played it during a Commander match rather than simply showing off one of the rarest cards in the game’s history.
“I’m taking it out of the obnoxious big block,” said Posty, as the other players gasped. “It would ruin game night.”
High-value trading cards are typically kept graded and protected to preserve their condition, but Malone removed The One Ring from its case and actually used it as intended.
Malone’s card plays just like the more common versions of The One Ring: when it enters the battlefield, it grants protection from everything until the player’s next turn, then can be tapped to draw cards at the cost of accumulating burden counters that eventually drain life. What makes his copy special is the 001/001 serial number — it’s the only one in existence.
Why is Post Malone’s One Ring card worth $2 million?
The card comes from 2023’s The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth set, but Wizards of the Coast printed just one serialized 001/001 version of The One Ring to reflect the unique Ring at the center of J.R.R. Tolkien’s story. Its rarity immediately turned the card into one of the biggest prizes from Tales of Middle-earth, with collectors searching for it from the moment the set was released.
That one-of-one copy was found by Canadian collector Brook Trafton, authenticated by PSA and graded Mint 9 before Malone bought it directly from him for $2 million in August 2023.
“When I found the One Ring, the first person who came to mind was Post Malone,” Trafton commented on a video of the sale. “I have played MTG since I was a kid and obviously it would be amazing to keep this card. But for a guy like me, being able to sell it is life-changing. I just really hoped it would go to someone who would appreciate it as much as I do.”
Since Malone bought the card in 2023, Magic has returned to Middle-earth. A new The Hobbit set was released Aug. 14, built around Bilbo Baggins’ journey to the Lonely Mountain and featuring characters including Gandalf, Thorin and Smaug.
While The Hobbit does include a new treatment of The One Ring, Malone’s serialized 001/001 copy from Tales of Middle-earth remains unique. Now that Post Malone has shown he’s willing to use the Ring, we can only hope he has the strength to resist its temptations. Otherwise, well, that whole “end of the age of Men” thing could be on its way.